With the ever present waste management problem, the baby care industry has felt a long and increasing need for new and improved nondisposable diapers. For example, some publications have estimated that approximately 18 billion plastic diapers are buried in landfills each year, and that disposable diapers constitute approximately 30% of the total nonbiodegradable materials buried in landfills in the United States.
Part of the problem is that the baby care industry has made few improvements to enhance the ease of use and durability of the conventional nondisposable diapers. The present invention provides such improvements and accordingly should provide additional encouragement to parents to switch from using disposable diapers, which have created an environmental problem, to a nondisposable diaper.
For example, the present invention provides a nondisposable diaper in which critical stitching is enclosed and thus protected against wear and tear from outside contact. Also, by not exposing such seams to the baby's bottom, the nondisposable diaper in the present invention is more comfortable for the baby. Also, the present invention provides an improved design which permits the nondisposable diaper to dry faster and more efficiently. Decreased drying time translates into energy savings. Also, the nondisposable diaper according to the present invention requires less material which means that more diapers may be washed in one drying load.
A related problem often encountered with conventional nondisposable diapers is that because they do not dry during a typical drying cycle, they remain somewhat damp while stored. A damp diaper is more susceptible to molding and rotting, and thus typically will not last as long. The present invention helps to eliminate these and other problems associated with conventional nondisposable diapers.